@pnathan For sure, but it feels like my mind currently can only go deep into one or the other (theory and abstractions, or particulars), and to work heavily with the intersection of theory and particulars feels like it'd compromise my ability to do either well (go deep).

@bthall @pnathan FWIW, programming becomes an abstraction again very quickly. You stop “capitalize this letter”, “reverse this string”, and start seeing it as data flowing through systems.

@tek @pnathan Ah, I aspire to attain this level of insight.

Just before you sent this I was wondering if my perspective (of seeing programming as being overly particular) is being driven too much by my current focus upon seeing *the system* and how it works, rather than just using it as I need to.

I think you articulated the last point/view very well!

@bthall @pnathan The high level stuff is where it gets fun! I mean, the low level twiddling can be enormously satisfying, too, like working a crossword. But writ large, it’s more like building a weather system.

@bthall there are enlightenment moments where you find you now can see, gathered in your head, the systems, the algorithms, and the bits all interlocking through the dimensions.

@bthall It's a crude likeness but para 1 of the Tao Te Ching is like the thing. You hold the entire thing in your head, from the abstract servers to the bits, with the overarching theoreticals playing out and intertwining at each level.

Programming is a sad sack of a term for it; hacking is a better phrase, but neither encompass the nature of the business.

https://terebess.hu/english/tao/gia.html